Gravity Induced Grand UnificationMotivated by the lack of evidence for physics beyond the Standard Model in the TeV region, we discussed an alternative path for grand unification. We show that simple grand unification models based on e.g. SU(5) can work successfully even without low scale supersymmetry. In particular quantum gravitational effects could easily modify the unification conditions for the gauge and Yukawa couplings. _____________________________

The LHC has been running for over 2 years and the different experiments have accumulated enough data to find a new particle which could well be the Higgs boson, achieve Standard Model measurements with precision at the percent level, and seriously constrain a large variety of new physics scenarios, giving important hints on what the physics beyond the Standard Model can be and what it cannot be. This presentation will focus on ATLAS and CMS latest searches for new physics in events featuring signatures relevant to theories of quantum gravity.

Is aether technically natural?I will discuss whether higher energy Lorentz violation should be considered a natural expectation in theories of quantum gravity with a preferred frame._____________________________

If spacetime is a causal set then Lorentz symmetry is unbroken_____________________________

Dynamical dimensional reduction and Asymptotic SafetyThe effective average action approach to Quantum Einstein Gravity (QEG) is discussed as a natural framework for exploring the scale dependent Riemannian geometry and multifractal micro-structure of the effective spacetimes predicted by QEG. Their fractal properties are related to the functional RG flow on theory space, and the special role of the running cosmological constant is emphasized. The prospects of an experimental verification will also be discussed.

Dark Matter and Dark Energy as a Possible Manifestation of a Fundamental ScaleIf we take the idea of the Planck length as a fundamental (minimum) scale and if additionally we impose the Cosmological Constant ($Lambda$) as and infrared (IR) cut-off parameter. Then it is possible to demonstrate that Dark Matter effects can emerge as a consequence of an IR-UV mix effect. This opens the possibility of unifying the Dark Energy and Dark matter effects in a single approach.

Quantum-gravity effects as noise for
gravity-wave detectorsI discuss a mechanism that can allow Planck scale effects to manifest themselves as a source of lof-frequency noise for interferometers. The mechanism requires a discrete formulation of dynamics at the Planck scale.____________________Dancing in the Dark: Images of Quantum Black HolesThere have recently been a number of rather surprising suggestions

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory is a cubic-kilometer-scale neutrino detector built into the ice sheet at the geographic South Pole. Completed in December 2010, the detector consists of an array of photomultiplier tubes deployed along 86 cables ("strings") at depths of 1450 to 2450 m, as well as the IceTop air shower array of surface Cherenkov tanks. IceCube is detecting atmospheric neutrinos of energies above approximately 100 GeV at a rate of ~6 per hour, and is currently searching for extraterrestrial neutrinos from cosmic ray accelerators. A measurement of the atmospheric neutr